1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:03,239 Speaker 1: Hey, history enthusiasts, you get not one, but two events 2 00:00:03,240 --> 00:00:05,800 Speaker 1: in history today. Heads up that you also might hear 3 00:00:05,840 --> 00:00:09,760 Speaker 1: two different hosts, me and Tracy V. Wilson. With that said, 4 00:00:09,880 --> 00:00:13,399 Speaker 1: on with the show. Welcome to this day in History 5 00:00:13,400 --> 00:00:15,960 Speaker 1: Class from how Stuff Works dot com and from the 6 00:00:15,960 --> 00:00:18,200 Speaker 1: desk of Stuff you Missed in History Class. It's the 7 00:00:18,200 --> 00:00:20,439 Speaker 1: show where we explore the past one day at a 8 00:00:20,480 --> 00:00:27,920 Speaker 1: time with a quick look at what happened today in history. Hello, 9 00:00:28,000 --> 00:00:30,520 Speaker 1: and welcome to the podcast. I'm Tracy V. Wilson and 10 00:00:30,560 --> 00:00:34,720 Speaker 1: it's November eighteen. Steamboat Willie made its debut on this 11 00:00:34,800 --> 00:00:39,200 Speaker 1: day in nine. This is often remembered as the first 12 00:00:39,280 --> 00:00:43,080 Speaker 1: animated appearance of Mickey Mouse, but that's not quite right. 13 00:00:44,200 --> 00:00:47,240 Speaker 1: So here's the story. Walt Disney had started an animation 14 00:00:47,240 --> 00:00:51,400 Speaker 1: company in Hollywood with his brother Roy In, but they 15 00:00:51,400 --> 00:00:55,319 Speaker 1: hadn't quite gotten it financially successful yet. The company had 16 00:00:55,360 --> 00:00:58,720 Speaker 1: created two animated series. One was Alice Comedies and one 17 00:00:58,800 --> 00:01:03,160 Speaker 1: was Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. Oswald was pretty popular, but 18 00:01:03,200 --> 00:01:06,440 Speaker 1: then in night, Disney went to what he thought was 19 00:01:06,480 --> 00:01:10,920 Speaker 1: going to be a contract negotiation with his distributor, Universal Pictures, 20 00:01:11,600 --> 00:01:14,880 Speaker 1: but he found out that Universal actually owned all of 21 00:01:14,959 --> 00:01:17,600 Speaker 1: the rights to the Oswald cartoons, so he needed to 22 00:01:17,640 --> 00:01:20,560 Speaker 1: come up with a new lead character. That character was, 23 00:01:20,600 --> 00:01:23,880 Speaker 1: of course, Mickey Mouse, and the first two Mickey Mouse 24 00:01:23,880 --> 00:01:27,840 Speaker 1: cartoons were finished in the spring of One was called 25 00:01:27,920 --> 00:01:30,880 Speaker 1: Plane Crazy. Plane is spelled p L A n E. 26 00:01:31,760 --> 00:01:35,080 Speaker 1: The other was The Gallop and Gaucho, and like his 27 00:01:35,160 --> 00:01:37,679 Speaker 1: earlier cartoons and a lot of other films at the time, 28 00:01:37,760 --> 00:01:40,520 Speaker 1: even most other films at the time, these were silent. 29 00:01:41,240 --> 00:01:45,520 Speaker 1: Synchronized sound was still in its infancy. The first feature 30 00:01:45,680 --> 00:01:49,240 Speaker 1: film with synchronized sound and dialogue was The Jazz Singer 31 00:01:49,560 --> 00:01:53,800 Speaker 1: What had come out just a year before, so Disney 32 00:01:53,840 --> 00:01:56,720 Speaker 1: thought that this might give him an opportunity to make 33 00:01:56,760 --> 00:02:02,120 Speaker 1: an animated film with synchronized sound featuring his newly created 34 00:02:02,200 --> 00:02:06,000 Speaker 1: Mouse character. The title of their work in progress was 35 00:02:06,040 --> 00:02:09,360 Speaker 1: an homage to Buster Keaton's Steamboat Bill Jr. Which had 36 00:02:09,400 --> 00:02:12,360 Speaker 1: come out that year as well, and the film featured 37 00:02:12,480 --> 00:02:15,280 Speaker 1: Mickey and Minnie Mouse and Pegleg Pete and a mostly 38 00:02:15,400 --> 00:02:18,639 Speaker 1: lighthearted set of scenes set aboard a steamboat, a lot 39 00:02:18,720 --> 00:02:20,840 Speaker 1: of it to the tune of the song Turkey and 40 00:02:20,840 --> 00:02:25,360 Speaker 1: the Straw. Another misconception about all this is that Disney 41 00:02:25,440 --> 00:02:28,000 Speaker 1: himself did all the creative work with this, but like 42 00:02:28,160 --> 00:02:30,560 Speaker 1: very many of the other early Disney cartoons, it was 43 00:02:30,600 --> 00:02:35,200 Speaker 1: really animated by of I Works. This process of creating 44 00:02:35,240 --> 00:02:38,320 Speaker 1: the film was full of trial and error because, like 45 00:02:38,360 --> 00:02:41,280 Speaker 1: I said, synchronized sound was really new. The whole idea 46 00:02:41,320 --> 00:02:43,880 Speaker 1: of animating film where the sound was going to match 47 00:02:43,960 --> 00:02:46,640 Speaker 1: up to what was happening on screen was really complicated 48 00:02:46,840 --> 00:02:50,520 Speaker 1: and also knew, so they started out using a metronome 49 00:02:50,600 --> 00:02:52,560 Speaker 1: for timing, and they did a lot of tests and 50 00:02:52,600 --> 00:02:57,280 Speaker 1: then worked days and nights to finish it. Scoring this 51 00:02:57,320 --> 00:03:00,959 Speaker 1: film was also a huge challenge. The orchestra ra needed 52 00:03:01,000 --> 00:03:03,600 Speaker 1: to match what they were playing to what was happening 53 00:03:03,600 --> 00:03:05,120 Speaker 1: on the screen, and that turned out to be a 54 00:03:05,160 --> 00:03:08,440 Speaker 1: lot harder than you might expect. They finally added a 55 00:03:08,480 --> 00:03:11,120 Speaker 1: bouncing ball to the print for the conductor to use 56 00:03:11,160 --> 00:03:14,480 Speaker 1: as a guide, and that was a massive improvement over 57 00:03:14,520 --> 00:03:18,040 Speaker 1: their first attempts to play the score. Recording for this 58 00:03:18,080 --> 00:03:21,160 Speaker 1: film was extremely expensive, and Disney had to sell his 59 00:03:21,280 --> 00:03:24,240 Speaker 1: car to make payroll just two weeks before the film debut, 60 00:03:24,919 --> 00:03:27,200 Speaker 1: and they had to borrow money from promoter at Harry 61 00:03:27,200 --> 00:03:30,480 Speaker 1: Reichenbach to get the film screened at all, and the end, 62 00:03:30,480 --> 00:03:33,040 Speaker 1: though it all worked out. Steamboat Willie was released at 63 00:03:33,040 --> 00:03:37,000 Speaker 1: the Colony Theater in New York on November eight. They 64 00:03:37,000 --> 00:03:39,640 Speaker 1: wanted it to open on Broadway so that it would 65 00:03:39,640 --> 00:03:43,560 Speaker 1: be reviewed, and the audience loved it, and so did 66 00:03:43,560 --> 00:03:47,120 Speaker 1: the reviewers. It got very positive write ups in publications 67 00:03:47,120 --> 00:03:50,720 Speaker 1: like Variety and The New York Times. Steamboat Willie spent 68 00:03:50,760 --> 00:03:54,560 Speaker 1: two weeks exclusively at the Colony Theater before being sent 69 00:03:54,640 --> 00:03:57,640 Speaker 1: on to other theaters to show there as well. Money 70 00:03:57,840 --> 00:04:00,760 Speaker 1: continued to be tight for Walt and like Disney though 71 00:04:01,000 --> 00:04:03,000 Speaker 1: even after this happened, that went on for a really 72 00:04:03,040 --> 00:04:05,200 Speaker 1: long time. But this was the first of a lot 73 00:04:05,240 --> 00:04:08,160 Speaker 1: of successes, and of course it put Disney on the 74 00:04:08,200 --> 00:04:11,680 Speaker 1: path to creating feature length animated films and what would 75 00:04:11,720 --> 00:04:16,200 Speaker 1: grow into a massive media empire. Thanks to Eve's Jeff 76 00:04:16,240 --> 00:04:19,160 Speaker 1: Cope for her research work on today's episode into Casey Pigraham, 77 00:04:19,160 --> 00:04:21,799 Speaker 1: and Chandler May's for their audio work on the show, 78 00:04:22,400 --> 00:04:24,240 Speaker 1: you can subscribe to the Stay in History Class on 79 00:04:24,279 --> 00:04:26,960 Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, Google podcast and We're about to get your 80 00:04:26,960 --> 00:04:29,320 Speaker 1: podcast and you can tune in tomorrow for a prime 81 00:04:29,320 --> 00:04:32,400 Speaker 1: minister who was not just a first at this point. 82 00:04:32,480 --> 00:04:44,000 Speaker 1: She's an only. Hi, I'm Eves and you're listening to 83 00:04:44,080 --> 00:04:47,120 Speaker 1: this day in History class, a show that makes time 84 00:04:47,160 --> 00:04:59,720 Speaker 1: travel a little bit easier. The day was November three 85 00:05:00,240 --> 00:05:03,400 Speaker 1: at noon. North American railroads changed to a new time 86 00:05:03,440 --> 00:05:08,599 Speaker 1: system called Standard Railway Time. US and Canadian Railway adopted 87 00:05:08,680 --> 00:05:12,240 Speaker 1: five standardized time zones so that everyone would run on 88 00:05:12,360 --> 00:05:16,520 Speaker 1: railroad time. Before this point, communities had their own local 89 00:05:16,600 --> 00:05:20,000 Speaker 1: times based on the movement of the sun, but having 90 00:05:20,040 --> 00:05:23,080 Speaker 1: all these different local times caused a lot of confusion. 91 00:05:23,200 --> 00:05:27,120 Speaker 1: As rail lines became more extensive, each railroad adopted the 92 00:05:27,120 --> 00:05:29,919 Speaker 1: time standard of its home city or another important city 93 00:05:29,920 --> 00:05:34,000 Speaker 1: on its route. Railroad timetables used a bunch of different standards, 94 00:05:34,040 --> 00:05:37,320 Speaker 1: and scheduling was a pain. Local times were a hassle 95 00:05:37,360 --> 00:05:41,919 Speaker 1: for shippers, train passengers, and ticket sellers. The multitude of 96 00:05:41,920 --> 00:05:44,880 Speaker 1: time zones also made things difficult for people who used 97 00:05:44,920 --> 00:05:48,880 Speaker 1: and operated telegraphs and telephones. The need for a new 98 00:05:48,920 --> 00:05:53,559 Speaker 1: time system was clear. Astronomers and geophysicists have been calling 99 00:05:53,560 --> 00:05:57,039 Speaker 1: for standardized time for a while. In eighteen forty eight, England, 100 00:05:57,080 --> 00:06:00,480 Speaker 1: Scotland and Wales switched over to Greenwich Mean time after 101 00:06:00,640 --> 00:06:05,039 Speaker 1: scientists and mathematician John Herschel had advocated for standardized time 102 00:06:05,080 --> 00:06:09,320 Speaker 1: for years. People in North America, including a principle named 103 00:06:09,400 --> 00:06:12,520 Speaker 1: Charles F. Dowd and Sanford Fleming, chief engineer of the 104 00:06:12,520 --> 00:06:15,719 Speaker 1: Government Railways of Canada, had also been advocating for a 105 00:06:15,760 --> 00:06:18,560 Speaker 1: switch to a new time standard in the US. In Canada, 106 00:06:19,600 --> 00:06:22,640 Speaker 1: William F. Allen was secretary of the General Time Convention, 107 00:06:23,000 --> 00:06:26,840 Speaker 1: which the railways formed to coordinate their schedules. He championed 108 00:06:26,920 --> 00:06:31,320 Speaker 1: the adoption of standard time. In October of eighteen eighty three, 109 00:06:31,440 --> 00:06:35,640 Speaker 1: the railroads agreed to adopt five time zones, inter Colonial Time, 110 00:06:35,800 --> 00:06:41,320 Speaker 1: Eastern Time, Central Time, Mountain Time, and Pacific Time. Intercolonial 111 00:06:41,400 --> 00:06:44,279 Speaker 1: time is now known as Atlantic Time in Eastern Canada. 112 00:06:45,360 --> 00:06:47,839 Speaker 1: The time zones were based on mean sun time on 113 00:06:47,880 --> 00:06:51,680 Speaker 1: the seventy one oh five and one twenty of Meridians 114 00:06:51,680 --> 00:06:55,440 Speaker 1: west of Greenwich. They were one hour apart because fifteen 115 00:06:55,440 --> 00:06:58,880 Speaker 1: degrees of longitude marks a one hour difference in solar time. 116 00:07:00,000 --> 00:07:02,400 Speaker 1: The U. S. Attorney General issued an edict that said 117 00:07:02,480 --> 00:07:06,640 Speaker 1: government departments wouldn't adopt railroad time until they were authorized 118 00:07:06,680 --> 00:07:10,600 Speaker 1: by Congress to do so. The new standard railway time 119 00:07:10,680 --> 00:07:14,560 Speaker 1: system launched at noon on November eighteen At that point, 120 00:07:14,680 --> 00:07:17,520 Speaker 1: train conductors changed their watches from their railroads times to 121 00:07:17,520 --> 00:07:21,280 Speaker 1: the new standard times. There was some opposition to the change, 122 00:07:21,400 --> 00:07:24,920 Speaker 1: as some people felt that daylight was being stolen from them, 123 00:07:25,200 --> 00:07:27,800 Speaker 1: or that the railroads were trying to go against nature 124 00:07:27,920 --> 00:07:31,240 Speaker 1: with the new system, and some thought that the new 125 00:07:31,280 --> 00:07:34,280 Speaker 1: time system was some ruse that watchmakers were up to 126 00:07:34,280 --> 00:07:38,640 Speaker 1: to get business. Some people were vehemently against the change, 127 00:07:38,760 --> 00:07:41,600 Speaker 1: like the mayor of Bangor, Maine, who claimed that the 128 00:07:41,680 --> 00:07:45,600 Speaker 1: new time was unconstitutional and said nobody could change the 129 00:07:45,680 --> 00:07:50,640 Speaker 1: quote immutable laws of guide. The change also spurred legal issues, 130 00:07:51,040 --> 00:07:54,600 Speaker 1: but cities were largely cooperative in adopting the new standard time, 131 00:07:54,960 --> 00:07:59,040 Speaker 1: and the press and local officials approved the switch. The 132 00:07:59,080 --> 00:08:03,280 Speaker 1: new system made coordinating schedules much easier, and people began 133 00:08:03,320 --> 00:08:06,880 Speaker 1: to organize their daily routines according to standard railway time. 134 00:08:08,000 --> 00:08:11,920 Speaker 1: This system lasted for thirty five years until Congress intervened 135 00:08:11,960 --> 00:08:15,880 Speaker 1: and enacted standard time in daylight saving time in nineteen eighteen. 136 00:08:17,040 --> 00:08:19,680 Speaker 1: Most of the world had adopted international time zones by 137 00:08:19,680 --> 00:08:24,280 Speaker 1: the mid nineteen hundreds. I'm each Deathcote, and hopefully you 138 00:08:24,320 --> 00:08:27,240 Speaker 1: know a little more about history today than you did yesterday. 139 00:08:28,280 --> 00:08:31,120 Speaker 1: Have a hard time, staying present as you mindlessly scrolled 140 00:08:31,120 --> 00:08:33,960 Speaker 1: through social media. Lucky for you, were stuck in the 141 00:08:34,000 --> 00:08:40,080 Speaker 1: past at T D i h C Podcast on Facebook, Instagram, 142 00:08:40,120 --> 00:08:44,280 Speaker 1: and Twitter. Our email address is this day at I 143 00:08:44,480 --> 00:08:48,080 Speaker 1: heart media dot com. I hope you liked this show. 144 00:08:48,280 --> 00:08:50,720 Speaker 1: We'll be back tomorrow with another episode.